Power transmission



May 13, 1941.

Q 'FIV-l Filed lay 26. 1937 fav ` 14@il Q A@ -Ilil )F6 INVENTOR 482 'THOMAS BDO:

/ BY A ATTORNEY Paiemed May is, tesi l ernst POWER TRANSMISSION Thomas B. Doe, New York, N. Y.,

Waterbury Tool Qompany, Waterbury,

assignor to The Conn.,

a corporation ci Coecticut Application May 26, i937, iSeriai No. M4597 7 Claims.

This invention relates to power transmissions and more particularly to those of the type comprising two or more fluid pressure energy translating devices, one of which may function as a pump and another as a. fluid motor. The invention ispartlcularly applicable to such devices of the type having parallel axial cylinder bores with swash plate mechanism for reciprocating the pistons therein together with a plate type oi rotary valve mechanism. f

Devices of' this character, particularly those in which the cylinder barrel and pistons revolve special means for insuring low friction losses as well as low leakage losses.

The principles utilized in solving the valveplate problem are also applicable to the thrust bearings at the socket ring and it is a further object to provide an improved hydraulicallyl balanced thrust bearing for this purpose.

Further objects and advantages of the present -invention willbe apparent from the following against a stationary valveplate while the pistons are reciprocated by a socket ring rotating at a fixed or variable angle to the plane of rotation of the cylinder barrel, involve rather high end thrusts between the cylinder barrel and the valveplate and between the socket ring and the tilting box orangle box which determines the plane of rotation of the former. If high efficiencias are to be maintained-not only must the leakage occurring and the valveplate be reduced to a minimum but this must be done without causing excessive friction.

While these requirements have been met in the prior art for machines working at fairlyhigh pressures if it be attempted Jcooperate at much higher pressures, difliculties have been experienced due to deiections in the valveplate caused by the high localized stresses' set up therein. Although special compositions of bronze have been developed for securing both high strength and low` friction coefficients in the valveplate, it

v has been extremely dimcuit even with the best materials available to avoid delection dimcuities when operating at extremely high pressures.

It has been customary in the past to design for maximum rigidity in the valveplate and by accurate machining -to provide as nearly a perbetween the cylinder barrel feet fiat on the-valveplate surface as it is pos-d sible to obtain, expecting that the valveplate has suicient rigidity to maintain its fiatness under maximum load. According to the present invention the actual valving surface ofthe valveplate which runs against the cylinder barrel is purposely made sufficiently iiexible to permit deformation under normal loads and is so constructed as to be constantly urged by fluid pressure forces against the face of the cylinder barrel.

description, reference being had to the accompanying drawing wherein a preferred form of the present invention is clearly shown.

In the drawing:

Fig. l is a longitudinal cross section of a uid pressure energy translating device incorporating a preferred form of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a cross section on line '2-2 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 3 is a cross section on line 3 3 of Fig. i.

Fig. i is a. cross section on line iof Fig. 2.

The invention has been illustrated as applied to the well-known Waterbury type of variable displacement pump or uid motor. Such a mechanism comprises briey a casing itl; having its lett-hand open end 4closed by a valveplate t2. A shaft itl is journalled in the casing at the valveplate andcarries slidably mounted thereon by lseys it a cylinder barrel i8. Connected to the shaft by a universal joint 2@ is a socket ring 22 which is uicurnailed in a tilting box 2d. The tilting box is journalled on trunnions, not shown, for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis at right angles to and intersecting the shaft iii.

' A control shaft 25 is provided for adjusting the inclination of the tilting box 2t relative to the plane of the valveplate i2 through a connecting linkage, .not shown. The socket ring carries a plurality of connecting rods 2t which are articulated by ball joints 3d to the socket ring and by ball loints 32 to pistons tt which reciprocate in the bores is of the cylinder barrel. Each of the bores is provided with a cylinder port 33 of considerably smaller area than the cross section of the bore 36 and which opens into the left-hand or front tace of the barrel it.

The special construction of the valveplate mechanism is illustrated particularly in Figs. 2

and e. The valveplate is preferably formed from tween the ends of the pockets 8 and 55 there is provided annular groove 52 which is oi the same radial width as the pockets 8 and 5G but of less depth in the direction of the thickness of the valveplate.-r The valve ports 40 and 42, the pockets 48 .and 50, andthe annular groove 52 are preferably formed by end milling operations from solid stock.

Slidably mounted within the groove 52 and the pockets 48 and 50 is a onepiece sealing member 54 which is comprised of an annular band of good bearing material, preferably bronze, having integral sausage-shaped anges 56 and 58 which extend into and closely t the walls of the pockets 48 and 50. The upstandlng edgesI of these flanges are tapered down to a sharp edge as appears in Fig. 4. The tapered form gives a slight flexibility to the edge of the flange enabling it to engage the Walls oi' the pocket in a uid tight manner. The right-hand face of the sealing member 54 in Fig. 1 is ilat and in abutting relation with the left-hand face of the cylinder barrel I8 and is provided with a pair of arcuate ports 60 and 62 extending therethrough. Light springs 64 are mounted between the bottom of the pockets 48 and 50 and the under face of the sealing member 54 to maintain the latter in contact with the cylinder barrel initially when no fluid pressure exists in the system.

Radially outward from the sealing member 54 are provided a plurality of auxiliary bearing pads vwhieh are formed of suitable bearing material and rigidly secured to the valve-plate I2. The areas of the top face of the sealing member 54 and oi.' the ports 38 and 40 are preferably so correlated with the areas of the ycylinder bores 36 as to provide a net fluid pressure force on the cylinder barrel I8 of very small magnitudetendf ing tourge the same against the xed auxiliarybearing pads 58.

The tilting box 24 is provided with a hardened steel bearing plate E8 forming the stationary member of the thrust bearing for the socket ring 22. Behind each ball socket 30 the socket ring is provided with pockets 'I0 (see Fig. 3) in which are s lidably mounted individual sealing members I2 of a construction somewhat similar to the sealing member 54. The sealing vmembers 12, however, are not connected with one another by any dat band portion as are thetwo flange portions 5B and 58 of the sealing member 54. Light springs 'I4 may beprovided i'or maintaining initial contact between the lsealing members 12 and the bearing plate 88. The pistons 34 and connecting rods 28 are provided with central bores I6 through which uid from the cylinders 36 may be conducted to the chambers '10. The socket ring is provided with auxiliary bearing pads 'I8 rigidly secured thereto and abuttingthe bearing plate 68. A radial bearing 88 preferably oi the roller type is provided for taking radial loads when the tilting box 24 is inclined'away from the neutral position illustrated. The areas of the pockets 'Ill are preferably so correlated with the area of the cylinder bores 36 as to provide only bearing pads 18 when the tilting box 24 is inclined to full stroke position.

In operation considering the device disclosed to be used as a variable displacement pump and to be connected at the pipe connections 44 and 45 to a suitable load device such as a xed dis placement iluid motor, notshown, rotation of the shaft il! carries with it the cylinder barrel I8 and the socket ring 22. So long as the tilting 'a small net load on the socket ring auxiliary f azimut the connection 46, for example, valve port 42, l

valve port 62, and cylinder ports 38 into the bores 36 on one side of themachine ,and to be discharged through the ports 38, 50 and 40, and pipe connection 44 onthe opposite side of the machine.

Assuming the port 40 tobe the pressure sideV of the system for the moment, it will be seen that the sealing member 54 is on that side of the machine subjected to full working pressure over its bottom side, while on its top side it is subjected to substantially half that pressure due to the pressure drop occurring in the fluid iilm between the inner edge of the port 60 and the outer edge of the member 54. There is thus a predominate force urging the member 54' into uid sealingengagement with Lthe left-hand face of the cylinder barrel I8. The latter is maintained in running contact'with Lthe auxiliary pads 66 by the slight predominance of fluid pressure force on the barrel inthe direction of the valveplate. The sealing member 54 provides a tight seal between its front face and the barrelV I8 While the vfeather edges of the flanges 58 and 5S provide a corresponding tight seal with the edges of the pockets 48 and 50. Leakage is thus effectively held to aminimum. Since the member 54 isof light cross section and is not rigidly secured to the valveplatellit is permitted to partake of such-minor deections as are necesring are thus supported to alarge extenton a body of fluid acting directly on the face of the bearing member 68. The small `force not thus supported is provided by the uid acting against the inner surface of the sealing member 'I2 and by the force transmitted from the bearing memvber 68 to the auxiliary bearing pads 18.

While the fonnof embodiment oi the invention as herein disclosed, constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted, all coming within the scope of the claims which folloW. Y

What is claimed is as follows:

- l. In a duid pressure energy translating device of the type having a relatively rotatable cylinder barrel and valveplate having ilat abutting faces, means forming a pair of arcuate valve portsin the valveplate, means forming individual cylinder portsin the barrel, said portsopening into the fiat faces of their respective members, and a sealing member movably mounted in the valveplate and formed Withan annularat face contacting the cylinder barrel, said member` having arcuate ports within the annular face and com-y municating with the valveports, and a pair of opstanding anges surrounding the arcuate ports ports in the vvalveplate.

,i 4. In a fluid pressure energy of the type having a relativelyfrotatable cylinder means forming a pair of arcuate valve ports in the valveplate, means forming individual cylinder ports in the barrel, said ports opening into the flat faces of their' respective members, and a sealing member movably mounted in the valveplate and formed with an annular flat face contacting the cylinder barrel, said member having arcuate ports within the annular face and cornmunicating with the valve portsand a pair 'of upstanding flanges surrounding the arcuate ports in said member and slidably engaging the arcuate ports in the valveplate, saidupstandng flanges being tapered in cross section and slightly iiexible to engage the walls of the valve ports in a substantially iiuid tight manner.

3. In a fluid pressure energy translating device of the type having a relatively rotatable cylinder barrel and valveplate having flat abutting faces, means forming a pair of arcuate valve ports in the valveplate, an annular groove intheface of the valveplate, intercepting said-valve ports and extending therebetween, means forming individual cylinder ports in the' barrel, said ports opening into the fiat faces of their respective members. and a sealing member movably mounted in said groove and formed with a continuous annular fiat' face contacting .the cylinder barrel around a 'complete circle. said `member having arcuate ports within the annular face and communicating with `the valve ports, andv means for minimizing leakage between the valvelplate and sealing member.

barrel and valveplate having fiat abutting faces. means forming a pair of arcuate valve ports in the valveplate, means forming individual cylinder ports in the barrel, said ports opening into the fiat faces of their respective kmembers, and a translating`r dev-ice 5. In a fluid pressure energy translating device of the expansible chamber type, a' thrust bearing construction comprising relatively rotatable members between which a thrust force. is exerted by fluid pressure within the expansible chambers, conduit means communicating between the chambers and the space between said members, sealing means carried by one of said members and movable relative thereto toward and away from the other member, said sealing means acting to Vconne a body of fluid which is in communication with the chambers and in contact 4 ,"with thether member over an area suflicient to sustain a major portion of the thrust force between said members, said sealing lmeans including a thin flexible wall forming a iiuid tight slidable Joint between the sealing -means and said one member.

6. In a fluid pressure energy translating device of the expansible chamber type, a thrust bearing construction comprising relatively rotatable members between which a thrust force is exerted by fluid pressure Within the expansible chamvbera'conduit means communicating .between the chambers and the space between said members, sealing means carried by one of said members and movable relative thereto toward and away from the other member, said sealing means acting to corinne abody oi fluid which is in communication with the chambers and in contact :with the other member over an area suilcient to sustain a major portion of the thrust force ."between said members, said sealing means in-A sealing member movably mounted in the valveg` plate and formed with a continuous annular flat face contacting the cylinder barrel around a complete circle, said member having arcuate ports within the annular face and communicating with the valve ports. means for minimizing leakage between the valveplate and the' sealing member, and meanslforming an auxiliary bearing surface between the valveplate and the cylinder barrel for carrying a small portion of the thrust reaction on the valveplate, the major portion of the thrust reaction being exerted against the valveplate by the body of iiuid between the valveplate and the sealing member. 4

clding a thin iiexible` wall forming a fluid tight "slidable joint between the sealing means and said one member and means forming an auxiliary bearing surface between said members for sustaining the remainder of the thrust force.

7. In a uid pressure energy translating devicev 'of the type having a relatively rotatable cylinder' barrel andy valveplate having dat abutting faces, meansv forming a pair of arcuate valve ports in the valveplate, means forming individual cylinder 'ports in the barrel, said ports opening into the flat faces of their respective members, and a sealing member movably mounted on the face of 'the valveplate and formed with a continuous annular fiat face contacting the cylinder barrel around a complete circle, said member having arcuate ports within the annular face and communicating with the valve ports, andv engaging the valveplat'e with a iiuid sealing engagement l extending completely around the periphery of each valve port individually.

f l'I'HOML'iS B. DOE.` 

